11. West
Chapter 11
West
E ach day we’re together, the heat builds between Amelia and me. I’m happy she is getting more and more confident about our relationship.
More confident in herself.
Like now, I can’t take my eyes off her as she breezes through the office. Her presence fills the room, electrifying the air.
Our gazes lock as she sits at her desk, and I find myself lost in the way she looks at me.
I press the intercom. Her eyes are still on mine when she answers, “Yes, Mr. Davenport.”
“Lunch is here.” I now have lunch delivered most days of the week.
She smiles at me as she walks to my office.
I want to see her eat. I want her as close to me as possible.
We sit closer than necessary, our shoulders brushing as we eat.
“Want a bite?” Amelia offers, holding out her fork with a morsel of salad.
Salad…
Still, I lean in, accepting the offering. Our faces hover inches apart. She watches me and for a moment, I forget to chew.
I swallow the bite of salad. My gaze is still locked with hers. Her eyes sparkle with mischief as a playful smile tugs at her lips. It’s so infectious, I cannot help but return the smile.
“Delicious,” I murmur as the air between us crackles with an undeniable tension.
Amelia leans back, breaking the moment. “It is.”
As we finish our meal, I clear my throat. “I know this is not the moment, but—”
I’m so desperate to have her in my bed that I can’t wait any longer.
I keep that to myself as I pull an envelope from my top pocket and place it in front of her.
Amelia’s eyes are wide, her curiosity piqued. “What is it?”
I clear my throat. “They’re the results of my sexual health tests.”
I’ve kept the information in my desk for two days, despite her asking if I’ve received the results yet.
I had.
Although I’ve never had sex without a condom, I have had blow jobs without a thought that I could catch anything.
Stupid.
I don’t even want to know Amelia’s results. I trust her when she said Felix was her first and only, and both parties insisted on condoms.
Her eyes narrow. “Oh.”
“Go ahead, open it,” I encourage, trying to keep my voice steady, but inside my heart is racing.
Amelia hesitates, her fingers hovering over the envelope. “Are we doing this together?”
I shake my head. “No. I know you’re clean.”
She scoffs, folding her arms over her chest and tilting her head to one side. She looks so cute when she tries to be defiant. “No, you shouldn’t just trust me with this. I could’ve had one-night stands.”
I lean back in my chair, studying her. “You told me Felix was your first and only.”
The words leave a bitter taste in my mouth. God, I hate that it was him and not me. The thought of Felix touching her makes my blood boil.
“Right. I did say that, but you should open my envelope?” Her face reddens.
“Have you been with anyone else?” I ask, already knowing the answer. I overheard her in Club Elysium telling her friend she wanted to let loose and be wild for once in her life. That the only sex she had was with Felix. She went on to tell her she was going to pick up a guy and use him for the night.
“No,” she admits. “But I wanted to.” Amelia’s cheeks flush, and she looks down at the envelope. “Open my envelope, West. If we’re doing this, we’re doing it together.”
“I don’t need—”
She opens her mouth, but before she can speak, my office door swings open, and my father strides in. His thunderous expression turns into something else when he sees Amelia.
“Ah Amelia, how are you, my dear? My wife, Catherine, needs details of your family to invite to the engagement.”
I notice the subtle swallow in Amelia’s throat. She goes to answer, but I say, “Amelia’s parents died, and as she’s an only child, she has no family to invite.”
“Oh,” Dad says, lost for words. He stutters for a moment before adding, “I’m sorry to hear that. Do you have an extended family to invite? Aunts. Uncles...”
Fear flashes in Amelia’s eyes as she shakes her head. “No, I’m afraid I don’t have any other family in America. My parents and I were the only ones who came from Italy.”
“That’s not a problem,” Dad presses, his brow furrowing. “I can organize a plane and hotels to bring your Italian family over if you’d like.”
Amelia’s hands tremble as she says, “No, that won’t be necessary. I...I don’t have any family left.”
She gives him a pained stare, and I want nothing more than to reach out and comfort her. But I know I need to tread carefully with my father present.
“I’m sure Amelia would prefer that we keep the guest list small and intimate,” I interject. “Given the circumstances, it’s best if we focus on our immediate family and closest friends.”
My father regards me for a moment. Then pacified, he turns to Amelia, offering her a tight-lipped smile. “My apologies for prying. We’ll make sure the guest list is to your liking.”
Amelia nods, her posture visibly relaxing. “Thank you, Sir. I appreciate that.”
As my father exits the office, I steal a concerned glance at Amelia. Her hands are still trembling, and I reach out and hold them. “Let’s go home.”
In the elevator, we stand side by side. The small space amplifies the tension between us.
“Thank you for—” She swallows. “It’s hard talking about them and I know we’re fake, but I still feel they should be involved somehow—my parents.”
I wrap an arm around her shoulder, feeling the heat radiating from her body. “I’m so sorry. I wish I could change things for you.”
“You do enough.”
Her gaze meets mine. A jolt of electricity courses through me as the elevator stops.
“After you.” I gesture for her to exit first.
“Such a gentleman,” she teases, a playful smile dancing on her lips. I smile because my Amelia is back.
“Not always,” I tease back.
Driving home, the tension is palpable. Amelia’s leg presses against mine as she shifts on top of her seat. The warmth of her skin seeps through the fabric of my pants, but neither of us moves away. It’s like we’re drawn together like magnets.
“Should we read the results?” she asks, reaching for the envelopes I put back in my pocket.
“Are you sure?”
“Are you scared?”
At a red light, I turn to find her studying me. The intensity in her eyes takes my breath away.
“I am scared, but not about what’s in the envelope,” I murmur.
Her fingers brush my jaw. I inhale sharply as the unusual but brief contact ignites a fire within me. As her eyes lock on mine, the air becomes thick with unspoken desire. “Me too.”
“You open both.”
My heart races as she reads both sets of results.
“Clean bill of health for both of us,” she says, winking. “Did you expect that?”
“I haven’t had sex for a few years,” I tell her. “Not since Naomi Wetherington claimed I had a threesome with her and another model.”
“Not Dom,” she asks. And I’m going to fucking kill Felix for telling her about what we used to get up to. Not that we have done anything for years.
“No, definitely two females.”
“I thought that would have been good for your ego,” she jokes.
“It was until they tried to blackmail me; then it became very bad for business. I refused to be blackmailed. Unfortunately, the news came out and NeuroPort Dynamics shares lost two percent overnight. And the board called for my resignation. Only my father stopped that from happening.”
“Did you? Did you have a threesome?”
“No. I never had sex with Naomi or any other model. My arms were around them in a club for a photo, and then I walked away.”
Her cell rings, and she reaches into her purse as she says, “Did they plan it?”
“I believe so.”
Amelia checks her phone, releases a sigh and says, “Yeah, Felix.”
She rolls her eyes, but her mounting frustration is clear as she listens to the conversation.
“What do you mean, you’ve given me a week to get over it? We’re over. I am not coming back.”
She listens, laughs, and then, with an exasperated sigh, she stares at the ceiling.
“Cut the crap. You’re only apologizing because you got busted. Jodie chatted with Carly and spilled the beans that this wasn’t a onetime thing.”
She shakes her head. “I’m done discussing this with you. We’re through.”
“No.” Her hand slams on her chest as she whispers, “Don’t burn them.”
I snatch the device from her grasp.
“What are you doing?” Amelia’s voice rises.
“She’s with me now.”
“Who the hell are you? She’s my girlfriend!” Felix yells.
“I’m the man who will treat her right. I’m her fiancé.”
“Is that you, West?” Felix says, his tone low and dangerous. “What do you mean fucking fiance?”
I hold the phone to my ear once more while I stare at Amelia and tell Felix one final time, “Yes. And now Amelia is mine. If you call her again, I will deal with you.”
I disconnect the call and turn to Amelia. Her face is a mix of anger and distress, tears welling up in her eyes.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, reaching out to touch her arm.
She takes a shaky breath. “He’s...he’s burning my things. All my stuff is still at his place, and now I’ll lose everything because you won’t let me go back.”
My chest tightens. “What exactly is ‘everything’?”
“The only things I have left of my parents,” she whispers, her voice breaking.
Guilt washes over me. I’ve been so caught up in our arrangement that I didn’t even consider what she might have left behind.
“Do you still have a key to the apartment?”
Tears coat her eyes as she nods and bites her lip as she nods.
I tap on the window and tell the driver to travel to the other side of Manhattan.
I turn back to Amelia. Her glistening eyes are now wide with hope. I take her hand in mine, squeezing it gently.
“Don’t remove anything that he bought you,” I tell her firmly. “From now on, I will buy you everything you need.”
Then she asks with a shaky voice, “I only need my parents’ photos.”
“Good.”
Her eyes light up, a smile spreading across her face.
But my heart sinks. How could I have been so blind? “And once we get your things, you’re going to leave the key there,” I press, my tone firm but gentle.
Before I can react, Amelia launches herself into my arms. Her lips crash against mine, catching me completely off guard.
For a moment, I’m frozen, stunned by her sudden display of affection.
But then, instinct takes over. My arms wrap around her waist, pulling her closer. The kiss deepens as I lose myself in the softness of her lips and the warmth of her body as it presses against mine.
When we finally break apart, we’re both breathless.
Pink dusts Amelia’s cheeks. “Thank you,” she whispers, her fingers tracing my jawline. “You have no idea how much this means to me.”
I swallow hard, trying to regain my composure. “I am starting to understand.”
“You’re the first person who has.”
It’s more important that I am the last person.